Summary

Some bacteria that are capable of causing serious disease are becoming resistant to most commonly available antibiotics.

Antibiotic resistant bacteria can spread from person to person in the community or from patient to patient in hospital.

Careful infection control procedures can minimise spread of these bacteria in hospitals.

Good personal hygiene can minimise spread of these bacteria in the community.

Careful prescribing of antibiotics will minimise the development of more antibiotic resistant strains of bacteria.

Antibiotic medications are used to kill bacteria, which can cause illness and disease. They have made a major contribution to human health. Many diseases that once killed people can now be treated effectively with antibiotics. However, some bacteria have become resistant to commonly used antibiotics.

Antibiotic resistant bacteria are bacteria that are not controlled or killed by antibiotics. They are able to survive and even multiply in the presence of an antibiotic. Most infection-causing bacteria can become resistant to at least some antibiotics. Bacteria that are resistant to many antibiotics are known as multi-resistant organisms (MRO).

Antibiotic resistance is a serious public health problem. It can be prevented by minimising unnecessary prescribing and overprescribing of antibiotics, the correct use of prescribed antibiotics, and good hygiene and infection control.

Some bacteria are naturally resistant to some antibiotics. For example, benzyl penicillin has very little effect on most organisms found in the human digestive system (gut).

Bacteria resistant to antibiotics

Some bacteria have developed resistance to antibiotics that were once commonly used to treat them. For example, Staphylococcus aureus (‘golden staph’ or MRSA) and Neisseria gonorrhoeae (the cause of gonorrhoea) are now almost always resistant to benzyl penicillin. In the past, these infections were usually controlled by penicillin.

The most serious concern with antibiotic resistance is that some bacteria have become resistant to almost all of the easily available antibiotics. These bacteria are able to cause serious disease and this is a major public health problem. Important examples are:

methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)

vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (VRE)

multi-drug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MDR-TB)

carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) gut bacteria

Ways to prevent antibiotic resistance

The most important ways to prevent antibiotic resistance are:

Minimise unnecessary prescribing and overprescribing of antibiotics. This occurs when people expect doctors to prescribe antibiotics for a viral illness (antibiotics do not work against viruses) or when antibiotics are prescribed for conditions that do not require them.

Complete the entire course of any prescribed antibiotic so that it can be fully effective and not breed resistance.

Practise good hygiene such as hand-washing and use appropriate infection control procedures.

Transmission of antibiotic resistant bacteria in hospitals

The common ways in which bacteria can be passed from person to person include:

contact with contaminated hands of hospital staff

contact with contaminated surfaces such as door handles, over-bed tables and call bells

contact with contaminated equipment, such as stethoscopes and blood pressure cuffs.

Infection control in hospitals

Standard precautions in hospitals are work practices that provide a basic level of infection control for the care of all people, regardless of their diagnosis or presumed infection status.

These precautions should be followed in all hospitals and healthcare facilities and include:

good personal hygiene, such as hand washing before and after patient contact and the appropriate use of alcohol-based hand rub solutions

Related information on other websites

Content Partner

This page has been produced in consultation with and approved by:
Department of Health and Human Services - RHP&R - Health Protection - Communicable Disease Prevention and Control Unit

Last updated:
March 2017

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